Inner Fears
by Einheriar
Summary: Ein is sent on a mission to destroy a monster haunting the forests in the south of Asgard. He will end up having to face his fears and doubts. Will the wingless angel overcome them? Or will he shatter?
1. Chapter 1

Author's notes: I put my other story on hold, because I got stuck. So, until I find a way to get myself out of the grave I dug myself, that story is on hold. In the meanwhile I came up with this story. I hope you all will like it.

English is not my first langage, so if you see any errors, don't be to suprised.

Please R&R and enjoy.

Edit: Thank you Megaolix for pointing out that small mistake.

Disclaimer: I don't own Riviera.

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**Inner Fears**

Chapter 1

Vast.

That was the word the word to describe this forest.

It was located in the southern parts of Asgard, and Ein was here on a mission: to destroy a monster that has been terrorizing a village located deep within the forest. Several dozen soldiers and mercenaries had been send before him to dispose of the monster, but they all failed miserably, returning battered, beaten and completely terrified.

The strange thing was that all of them described the monster differently. One said it was a huge black-scaled dragon, the other said it was a gargoyle, and yet another described it as a gigantic bat. Everyone saw something different, never the same thing. What was the same though, was that everyone said it could literally go up in smoke.

This was going to be quite difficult. This Ein knew for sure. He had been walking for several hours, heading towards the village. At times like these he missed his wings. Being able fly through the blue sky like a soaring eagle… But then Ein would remind himself that it was his own choice to give up his wings, to become a Grim Angel.

Choice.

The thing that is always there, even if you can't see it.

The thing with which you can shape your destiny.

The thing that even the Gods themselves can not take away from you.

Choice.

…Yes, he was certain of it. He made the right choice by becoming a Grim Angel. If he hadn't done that, he would have never met Cierra, Serene, Fia, Lina and all the others Sprites in Riviera, and Hector would have probably gotten away with his evil plan…

It was getting darker, but it wasn't because of the position of the sun. the farther Ein ventured into the forest, the closer the large trees were to each other, their branches and leaves blocking out the sun.

The Grim Angel sighed.

Traveling alone was not very fun. Rose didn't come along because she wanted to work on her book, or so she claimed. He missed his friends… Two years had past already since his return to his homeland. The more he thought about them, the more he missed them.

Lina, Fia, Serene and especially… Cierra. His feelings for her had always been different then the his feelings for his other friends. For a long time he wasn't sure what those feelings were. He thought his feelings for her were the feelings that you wouldhave for an older sister, but since he was an only child he didn't know for sure. Even though Cierra could be a little weird at some times, she had a good heart and the most beautiful and pure smile Ein had ever seen. Every time when she would smile at him, his heart would skip a beat.

When Hector took her soul to awaken Seth, it was as if his heart had been ripped out of his chest… The only thing he wanted to do was to pas judgment on Hector. Well, actually he wanted to rip that goddamn Magi's head off!

…This was the first time Ein had hated someone. He did not only hate Hector for what he did to not only Ledah and Cierra, but to all those innocent souls he had taken, but he also hated himself, for not being to save them.

Ledah, his fellow Grim Angel, his friend, his mentor and his partner.

Cierra, she who had helped him in so many different ways and who he, after the final battle, realized he loved. He was indescribably happy when she was brought back by Ursula, but also disappointed that all those other souls, like Ledah, could not be saved like Cierra…

He- a sudden rustling noise snapped him out of his thoughts. Instinctively, Ein drew his Diviner and took a battle stance. Turning to the sound he saw a beast. Slowly a very large, black wolf-like monster emerged from the bushes. It's crimson-red eyes were fixed upon the wingless angel. Ein's hands began to tremble lightly. With every step the monster took towards him, his hands began to tremble more and more. He didn't know what was happening, he was overwhelmed by fear. It was a fear that he had felt before and never wanted to feel again. _No,_ Ein thought,_ W-What is this... No..._

Slowly he began to back away. He… was afraid.

"What… are you?" he asked with a trembling voice. "Why do you… No! Stay away from me!"

What he did next, was something he had done once and had sworn never to do again.

Ein turned around and he ran, without looking back…


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's note:** Sorry, it took me longer then I thought. Anyhow, the story continues. Hope you all like it! Oh, and please review.

**Disclaimer:** Yeah, you probably guessed it: I don't own Riviera (sigh I hate having to do this everytime).

**

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**Inner Fears**

Chapter 2

He ran.

He ran until he almost collapsed from exhaustion.

Letting his Diviner fall on the mossy ground, Ein slowly let himself fall into a sitting position against a large tree. Panting heavily, he stared at his hands.

They were still trembling…

What had happened? That question appeared in his mind over and over again. That thing… When he had looked into it's eyes he became scared. It was as if all the fear and doubt he had ever experienced flashed through his mind at the same time. He couldn't take it, so he ran… just like two years ago.

He didn't literally _run_ away, but that is why he left Riviera. He was scared of his own feelings. Because of that, he also began to doubt himself and his capabilities.

Was he strong enough? Was his victory over Seth-Ra just luck? Was he worthy enough of being a Grim Angel? Was he worthy of such friends? Was he allowed to have such feelings for Cierra?

Such questions were on his mind. Especially the last one was often on his mind. In the end he had even had been afraid to find out the answers. So a month after the last battle, Ein left Riviera. When they asked why, he told them that he still had duty's as an Grim Angel. This was of course not the real reason. He wanted to get away from the questions and the doubts. Doubts that were turning into fears…

Everyone was of course sad that he was leaving. Even though Cierra gave him a smile when they said goodbye, he could see sadness in her eyes. He was sure it was the sadness that one would feel if a friend was going to leave, but still…

He felt like scum.

He felt like crying.

To bring her sadness was the most unforgivable thing he had ever done. To hurt the person he cared most about… But he was too afraid. He couldn't stay. Ein did not know what he would achieve by going back to Asgard, other then getting away from the fears and doubts.

And that was two years ago…

Looking up, Ein saw that it was already dusk. Slowly rising to his feet, the Grim Angel pondered over the situation. Should he stop and rest for the night, or travel some more before it has grown to dark to see? The beast may very well be in pursued of him, so to stop now might not be to smart. On the other hand, he needed some rest. That long sprint took a lot of energy.

After a few minutes, he had decided to move on. He needed to reach that village. Maybe they had some sort of information that could help him against the wolf.

After picking up and sheathing Einherjar, the wingless angel tried to orientate himself. Luckily for him, when he ran from the monster he had ran in the direction he was traveling in. Therefore, he knew he was in the right direction, but he didn't know how far it was to the village from here.

Sighing, Ein had decided he would try to get as far as possible. If he did not reach the village in time, he would make camp in the forest, and silently hoped not to be attacked by the wolf.

* * *

"Great," he murmured to himself. Ein was not able to reach the village before the sun had completely set. He had hid himself between two large tree roots of an even larger tree, so that he was less easy to be discovered. Sighing, the Grim Angel pulled out a blanket from the small backpack he had brought, and wrapped it around himself. 

It was cold, but he could not make a fire. A fire would be quickly discovered in the vast darkness of the night. It would surely attract the crimson-eyed beast…

Ein tried not to think about it, but instead focused on trying to get some sleep. After a while, he was successful… but even in his sleep, he would not find rest…

* * *

Where was he? 

Looking around himself, Ein saw nothing but darkness. He did not have any recollection of where he was or how he got here. Thinking that standing around would not change the situation he began to walk.

After a small while, he saw light at the end of the tunnel, so to speak. Heading towards the light he entered a familiar environment. The Nelde Ruins…

How in the name of the Gods did he get here? Ein looked around, but saw nobody. _It's quiet,_ he thought, _Far to quiet. No birds chirping. No wind blowing. No nothing..._

"Hello Ein," a voice suddenly said.

The wingless angel jumped up in surprise and tried to draw his sword. He stopped midway though, when he saw who was standing there.

"Cierra…" he said.

"A bit jumpy, are we?" she asked, a small grin on her delicate face.

"Yeah… sorry," Ein apologized. "I'm a bit-."

"It's alright," she interrupted him. "But I have to go now."

"What? Where are you going?"

"There was a rumor that a rare herb was growing somewhere near the top of the ruins. It's said that it only has a life span of several days, so I have to be quick," the Crimson Witch explained, and with that she turned around and disappeared in the shadows of the large trees.

Ein wanted to follow her, but stopped dead in his tracks. In the shadows where Cierra had just disappeared in, two big red eyes were now shining. His hands started shaking again and he quickly reached for his Diviner, but it was gone. Now that the wingless angel was completely defenseless, the beast used his chance and charged at him.

Ein, who had almost no time to react, was slammed to the ground, with the wolf on top of him. The black wolf let out a loud howl that sent a shiver down his spine. Ein desperately tried to free himself, but the beast was far too heavy.

Then it happened.

The wolf began to slash at him with it's huge, white, sharp claws. It slashed across his arms, his chest, his face… everywhere. The claws went through his flesh like a knife through hot butter. Ein was in a world of pain. A world of pain that only death could relief.

He couldn't take it, it hurt to much. The angel cried out in pain. He wanted the pain to stop. He wanted to die!

Then suddenly, without warning, the slashing stopped… The pain remained, but the attack had stopped.

Slowly, the Grim Angel managed to crack open an eye, slightly. Looking around as much as he was possible, he saw that it was dawn. Ein also noticed that this wasn't Nelde, he was in Asgard. His Diviner lay next to him, on the mossy ground.

_Was it all a dream? _He wondered. Trying to raze into a sitting position, the angel was greeted with pain, lots of it. Looking down, he saw that his clothes were drenched with his own blood. Had his nightmare become reality? What was even stranger though, was that his clothes were perfectly fine. No tears or anything.

Taking off his shirt and coat, Ein saw that his body was covered with wounds. His arms, legs, chest, and head… Just like in his nightmare. He grabbed his backpack and pulled out his emergency medical supplies, which consisted out of three Elixirs', some bandages and a few herbs against poison.

With some effort, he was able to pull the cork off the bottle of an Elixir. He poured about half of the orange liquid on his chest wounds, and the other half on his arms, legs and face. The wounds soon began to close a bit, and Ein wrapped the bandages around the most serious wounds, which were his chest area and head.

After he finished the first aid on himself, Ein tried to stand up. The wounds still hurt a lot, and when he was about halfway of standing up, they became even worse. The wingless angel almost fell back on the ground, but was able to maintain his balance at the last second.

Staying here was no longer an option. That… thing could able to wound him in his dreams, which was practically his last defense line. If he wasn't even safe in his own dreams anymore, how safe was it to stay here?

Ein had to get out of here. He would be safe in the village, at least for a time. Nevertheless, staying here was absolutely no option.

He could not defeat something like that! Especially in his current condition. That monster was like fear itself. The wingless angel now knew what those soldiers had gone through…

Grabbing his gear, Ein slowly got on his way to the village. It went very slowly. With every step he made, a surge of pain went though his entire body. His lack of rest was not helping either.

The Grim Angel silently prayed to the Gods that he would make it to the village alive… and mentally sane…


	3. Chapter 3

**Author Note's:** Well, I'm back with another chapter. It's not as long as the last one, but I'm doing my best. Please R&R and tell me what you think about it.

**Disclaimer:** Nope, don't own Riviera or anything in it.

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**Inner Fears**

Chapter 3

Three hours had past.

Ein had stumbled across a small river. He took off all his clothes from the waist up and slowly made his way towards the rivers' edge. His blood-soaked clothes needed washing.

Pain surged through his body when he slowly dropped to his knees. Moving around so much was certainly not helping the healing process of his wounds.

The Grim Angel carefully looked around, to make sure that it was safe, and then began to wash his clothes in the river water. It was cold and sent a small shiver down his spine. The clear, colorless water began to turn into a light shade of red by his blood. Ein stopped washing his clothes and leaned forward into the bloodstained water.

Ledah's face flashed through the young angel's mind.

Why?

Why did they have to fight?

Why did he have to die?

The memory of Ledah's death will forever be engraved into his memory. Into his mind. Into his soul…

If Hector would have just realized earlier, by himself, that the world does not need an absolute god to rule the world, the Ledah and all those other souls would still be alive!

…But he didn't…

And they are dead.

He was too weak… He was to weak to save anyone…

Ein knew now… He was not worthy.

He wasn't worthy of being a Grim Angel.

Ledah was far more worthy them. Then he ever would be…

Ledah deserved to life, not him.

_He_ should have died in Yggdrasil, not Ledah…

Why did Ledah throw his life away for him?

What did Ledah see in him that Ein himself could not?

…He probably saw something that wasn't there… That never will be there.

Ein was just… a kid. A child. A dumb little child.

He knew nothing…

He was weak…

He was not worthy of anything he had.

Not worthy of being a Grim Angel.

Not worthy of having such good friends.

Not worthy of feeling love.

Not even worth of living…

He should be dead. Ledah should have lived, and he should be dead! D-E-A-D! Then why! Why was he alive and was Ledah dead? It wasn't fair! It shouldn't be this way! Was this supposed to be destiny? Was this supposed to be fate? Did fate and destiny even exist? If so, they are cruel. They were cruel, and Ein hated them. He hated them for taking Ledah away. He hated them for letting him life and Ledah die…

Such cruelty…

Only Hades- no, not even Hades could be that cruel. To let him die like that, at the hands of a backstabbing traitor…

No, he could not blame Malice… But, on the other hand he could.

Malice thought she had sacrificed her future in order to become a Grim Angel, but if she knew what she going to have to sacrifice, she could have just said no. Even if she _had_ sacrificed her future, she should have realized that you always have a future. You can't just give it up. Why did she want to become a Grim Angel so badly? Was she jealous of Ledah and him? Or was she just another power-hungry fool like Hector?

Yes, Malice was a fool. A dead fool, and good riddance! She took the life of so many innocent people, including Ledah and… Cierra.

…In the end he couldn't safe anyone. Not Cierra, not Ledah… nobody…

He was strong enough to kill, but too weak to save…

Ein was ashamed of himself. He was a disappointment, even if others didn't think so.

He had disappointed Ledah. He had disappointed him in every way possible. What would Ledah think of him if he could see him now? He would be disappointed. He would think that Ein wasn't worth saving after all…

His vision blurred.

The Grim Angel realized that he was crying. Small streams of tears were running down the side of his face, dripping into the river. The bloodstained water had been washed away. The same kind of colorless water as before had replaced it. He looked down and saw the reflection of his pathetic, crying self…

…But it was not the only reflection he saw…

Behind his reflection, he saw the reflection of…

"Ledah…"

Before Ein could turn around, to see if he wasn't hallucinating, his head was pushed forward into the cold water. He flailed around wildly with his arms, trying to get his head back out of the water. But it was useless…

The hand that was pushing him underwater had an iron grip, it seemed. The grip tightened the more he tried to resist. More and more precious air began to escape Ein's mouth, until, eventually, there was no more left…

In complete panic, the angel opened his mouth, the last of his air vanishing. Water filled his lungs, and he was slowly beginning to loose consciousness. Quickly, his body ceased all resistance, as the mind began to fade…

He was going to die, Ein knew it. Fate and destiny had come to take his life… He was going to join Ledah in the next world.

…No, probably not. Ledah, the proud and brave angel of Asgard, was in heaven, and Ein, the coward and weakling of Asgard, would go to Hell.

Everything slowly began to fade away, turning into black emptiness…

The last thing Ein could remember clearly was the look on the face of the reflection of Ledah…

Hatred and disgust…


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Riviera or anything in it.

**Author's notes:** I hoped to make this chapter longer, but then I'll have to work 3 times as long on it. I have also got some exams next week so it would have taken even longer. I'm planning on speading things up a litlle, but it isn't really happening in this chapter. I promise I'll make the next chapter a bit faster in storyline, so you won't get bored.

* * *

**Inner Fears**

Chapter 4

Cold.

Silent.

Black.

…This was death, probably.

"You're not dead yet. There is still hope for you, a chance to live."

A chance… to live?

"Yes, take it, fight!"

…Why should I?

"What!"

Why should I fight? I am weak and useless… Nobody needs me…

"That's what _you_ think. The truth, however, is that there are a lot of people out there who care about you, who need you, who believe in you!"

…Name one.

"How about Cierra?"

C-Cierra? Why… would she need… me?

"You love her, and she loves you. However, you do not see that, and deny yourself that by thinking that she sees you only as a friend, a child, and you think yourself unworthy of her, of everything!"

Are… Are you sure that she loves me?

"No, unfortunately I am not one hundred percent sure… But neither will you if you don't live and confess your feelings for her!"

I-I can't… I've disappointed Ledah, the look on his face proved that to me… I don't have the right to live…

"…How can you believe such nonsense for even a second? Search your heart. You know that Ledah would never be disappointed in you; he sacrificed his life for you. Was he ever disappointed in you, even if you failed at something?"

…No… But his face?

"Do you really think that was Ledah? In a way it was Ledah, but it wasn't the real one. What you saw was your minds image of how _you_ think that Ledah would think and look at you now."

But I don't understand. If that wasn't Ledah, then who-

"And you never will if you don't start to fight! You must fight and search for the answers, only then you become whole again…"

Whole?

"…Time is running out."

Running… out?

"Yeah… So start fighting, damn it! If not for your own sake, then do it for the sake of others!"

Fight… I need to… fight… I need to fight… I NEED TO FIGHT!

There was a bright flash of light.

"Don't be afraid of your doubts, Ein!"

* * *

Ein's eyes regained their focus.

He didn't think about what he doing, he acted only on his instincts. All panic had disappeared from his mind. There was only the irresistible, undeniable will to fight. Adrenaline was raging throughout his body, giving him new strength.

The Grim Angel tried to push himself up, but even with his new strength, it wasn't enough. His hands shot to the back of his head, where the hand that pushing him down was, and grabbed it. He tried prying it off, but to no avail.

Then it occurred to him that his legs were free and unrestrained. With all his gathered strength, Ein kicked up backwards.

The angel felt his boot make contact with something for a second, but it was gone the next, and so was the hand.

He, almost literally, threw himself out of the water, onto the dry, hard, dirty earth. Ein rolled onto his stomach, then lifted himself a small distance from the ground, and began to puke out everything that had gotten in.

* * *

After, what seemed, an eternity of puking, a hard coughing and panting Ein, looked around himself.

There was no one, but, subconsciously, he had expected as much. The Grim Angel gathered his sword, Einherjar, that was lying on the ground nearby, and slowly got up. Thanks to his still increased adrenaline level, he felt no pain fro his wounds, but he knew that would not last long…

Everything that had happened in the past hours…

…The pain.

The fear…

…The doubts.

They all seemed so distant now…

Ein didn't know where this sudden, raw will to fight came from. He remembered having some sort of conversation with a voice inside his head, but that was the only thing he remembered of it. It was blurry all very blurry…

…Was he going insane?

A voice inside ones head could usually mean only two things: Someone had been talking to him telepathically, or he was becoming insane…

Unfortunately, for him, it seemed that, that at the moment, the second one was more likely then the first.

But had no time to think about that now. It was clear that the Grim Angel's attacker had left the area. He sighed, slightly relieved at that fact. Ein gathered some sticks, and made a small fire for his clothes to dry over. After that, he seated himself on a rather large rock. He took out some bread from his backpack and started eating, while thinking some things over.

It was strange…

For the past day, or so, he had been tortured by his own doubts, fear and thoughts. They were like loud screams inside his head, inside his soul, inside his very being… Now they only like faint whispers in the wind, as if a mental barrier had been erected between him and the screams… Had he learned to suppress it to some level? The doubts and fear were still there, but the absolute control they had over him was gone, for now at least.

This was an opportunity, and Ein had to use it.

He had to use it to destroy the evil that was haunting him, the evil that was lurking inside this forest. Even it was indeed the incarnation of fear, he had to face it. If he didn't, he could as well die right here. Killing it would also be the first step to becoming worthy… If he could kill that which so many other warriors, who were much braver then him, could not, then he will have proved to himself that he _is_ strong enough. Ein had told himself that was not strong enough to save, but by killing this beast, he would have proved to himself that he _could_ save. By killing this monster, he will save many innocent lives. The young angel swore to himself, for the last time, that he would not run away anymore. This time he would not break that oath.

It had to stop.

It had to end.

Ein was going to get rid of all the doubts and fear he had, once and for all. He was going to finally search for the answers… It was the only way…

The Grim Angel stood up, with some regained confidence. The pain of his wounds had returned, but he ignored them as much as possible. He took his, now, dry clothes and put them on. After putting out the fire, he walked back into the forest. His mission was clear.

* * *

The young angel didn't know where he was or where he was going. He let his instincts guide him. That was something he had not done in a very long time. For the past two years, he did not listen to his instincts, always thinking about every action, before he made one, never trusting what his instincts told him… Well except for when they told him that he was in danger. Now was the time to regain the trust he had lost.

After, about, an hour and a half, he stumbled across a very bizarre sight. It seemed almost as some sort of border. On one side, where he was standing, there was the rich, healthy, green forest, and on the other was a dead wasteland, filled with completely black, dead, charcoaled trees and scorched earth. It seemed to be several square kilometers long.

The sight made Ein feel uneasy.

What could have happened here? Was this the work of that evil being?

"Well… I'll find out the answer soon enough," the angel said to himself and entered the wasteland.

* * *

A small while later, the Grim Angel found the corpse of a fellow angel. The body was in sitting position against a dead tree. Judging by his clothing, or what was left of it, it was a mercenary. 

He looked horrible. Almost half of his flesh had been ripped from his head, exposing the white skull, his clothes were shred to pieces, a whole arm and foot were missing, his torso had been ripped open, some of the organs hanging out, and there was blood everywhere.

Ein was having a hard time not having to puke, again. A look of complete horror was on the body's face, the eyes and mouth wide open. The angel did not dare to think about what could have happened to him.

A quiver, with some arrows in it, and a blood-drenched bow lay beside the body. The grim angel kneeled down and closed the eyes of the corpse. Then he whispered a small prayer in the sacred language of Asgard.

"May your soul find peace in the heavenly plains," he said quietly. "And please forgive me. I can't bury your body now, there is still much that needs to be done. The evil has to be vanquished. I am also sorry for taking your bow, but I promise you that I put it to good use. Once this is done, I will send someone to retrieve your body and bring it back to your loved ones, so that you may have a proper burial."

Ein stood up, taking the bow and quiver and strapped them to his back. Then he drew an invisible cross with his hand, like he used to do, after vanquishing one or multiple demons. It was a silent plea to Gods for forgiveness. Forgiveness for both the demons and himself. For the demon to be forgiven for his sins in the afterlife, and for Ein to be forgiven for taking a life, even if it was in the name of peace or the Gods themselves... In this case, Ein plead for forgiveness for not being able to bury the deceased angel before him.

"I'm sorry..."


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer:** Don't own it, now get off my case.

**Author's Notes:** I would like to thank all the people who reviewed so far, and also ask to keep it up. I haven't heard anything negative about this story so far, so I guess I'm doing well then. For those of you who have been wondering. Yeah, I sort off enjoy putting Ein through so much. Maybe I have some sort of subconscious grudge against him, or his personallity, I don't know. Things will get better for him… maybe…

Anyway, please R&R if you want to.

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**Inner Fears**

Chapter 5

"Who the Hell are you and how did you get in here?"

"_I… I am the one responsible for all the suffering that has happened…"_

"How can that be? You are one of us."

"_Yes… I was."_

"Was?"

"_I died…"_

"How… is that possible?"

"_I was the one that unleashed the beast… It was an accident… I-I tried to flee, but… it killed me… And now, I am bound to this world until it is destroyed…"_

"But what can you do to help?"

"_Nothing… I can do nothing to aid you in defeating it. The reason I came here is to apologize for mistakes and plea for your help…"_

"…I see."

"_My lord, please, it must be stopped. If not, it will devour all life!"_

"It was already my plan to stop it. I was asked to do so. It has been terrorizing the citizens of our land. My duty is to protect the people, so I have come to stop it."

"_I… have a question to ask you, my lord. May I?"_

"Yes, please speak."

"_Forgive me for asking this, but, how did you… become like this?"_

"…I was torn."

"_Torn?"_

"Yes. I tore myself apart. I let myself stray from my destined path. Now I – no, we must become whole again."

"_I see, my lord. But will the other be able to do it?"_

"I have no doubt that he will succeed. As long as I guard this place, he will become stronger again. For the last two years, he had let himself become weaker and more torn, but that is over now. The mending has begun. He will conquer all that what has made him like he is now."

"_Do you think he will be strong enough again in time?"_

"We can only pray for that…"

* * *

He saw something move in the corner of his eye. Quickly, Ein turned and let the arrow fly. 

It impaled itself into the bark of a dead tree. He saw the shadow to his left. Turning, he saw a black shadow speeding away from him, over the dead wasteland. Ein's jaw almost hit the ground when he saw with what speed it was distancing itself from him. It had only been ten seconds or so, but the shadow was already several hundreds of meters away.

As the black shadow was becoming only a small dot in the distance, he noticed something ahead of it. He narrowed his eyes and saw something white. A large rock-formation perhaps? Or maybe even a building?

Ein didn't know what it was, but he knew that it was his next destination.

He walked over to the tree and tried to pull out the arrow. Unfortunately, it broke in two when he tried. The angel let out a deep sigh.

Tossing the arrow-piece away, he checked the quiver. "Only seven left…" he mumbled to himself. He strapped the bow and quiver back to his back, and then continued his journey.

* * *

He was still on his way. Dust formed every time one of his feet hit the ground. 

This wasteland was even larger then he had thought at first. Pondering over this, a bizarre thought suddenly hit him.

…It almost seemed like it was growing. The wasteland may be expanding itself, slowly consuming the forest. It was a strange thought, but… the last two days had not been very normal either. Ein figured that the beast was somehow connected to this. Would that mean it is becoming stronger?

Maybe it feeds off the forest to strengthen itself. However, that would raise the question: how is feeding off the forest making it stronger?

Once again more questions and no answers. This was not helping. He had the questions, now he needs the answers. Maybe there were some answers ahead of him? Maybe there are, maybe there are not. Only the Gods know that at this point, and Ein doubted they would come and tell him.

* * *

Freaking huge. 

That was a simple summary of Ein's thoughts at the moment. He stood before the largest cathedral he had ever seen in his life. There were no words to describe how big it was. In addition, it seemed to be very, very old.

Some parts of walls had collapsed or had large cracks in it. Pieces of the roof were missing; they probably collapsed and fell on top of anything that was beneath it. It looked like the large windows once held stained glass, but most off it was gone. Time had really taken its toll on this place.

Ein wondered what this cathedral was. He had never heard of such a place existing in the southern forests of Asgard. It was clear that it was build long before the Ragnarok war. It looked like it had been abandoned for ages. The angels back then must have been master building constructors.

He had a bad feeling about this place, but at the same time, he felt drawn to it. It was hard to describe. It was like a feeling, or an urge.

Slowly his feet began to move over the old tile path to the cathedral.

A few minutes later, he had arrived at the main entrance of the old cathedral. The great wooden doors of the entrance had almost completely rotten away, leaving nothing to stop people from entering its ground.

Ein marveled at the beautiful architecture - or what was left of it - of the building, as he entered. Several enormous stone columns supported the roof. At the far end of the cathedral, he saw some kind of platform with something on it.

He made his towards the platform. The floor consisted out countless small tiles. If you had to place them all by yourself, it would probably take you forever. There were rows of stone benches with three pathways between them. Some had been crushed beneath large pieces of the roof that had collapsed.

When he got closer, he saw that the platform was some kind of altar. There were a few statues on top of it, forming half a circle. The statues all had their arms outstretched to the same point, a small pedestal.

Ein climbed up the platform and walked over to the pedestal. On it was a very old book. It was opened for some reason. The angel hovered with his head over the book. On the pages, there were texts written, but he could not read them. It seemed to be written in some arcane language. A language that looked nothing like the sacred language of Asgard, or any other language he knew for that matter.

Ein raised his hand to turn the page of the book, but when he touched it, an indescribable pain surged through his entire body. He quickly jumped back, but tripped and fell on his butt. Looking at his hand, he saw small sparks of electricity.

What had just happened? The book seemed to be protected by some kind of spell, but why?

Before he could spend further thought on it, a loud laughing echoed through the building. Ein quickly rolled to his feet and drew his sword. What he saw next completely shocked him.

There, in the air, halfway the cathedral… was…

"Ledah…"

Instead of feeling joy, seeing his old friend again, Ein felt fear. Why was he afraid of Ledah?

Ledah raised his spear, Lorelei, and dashed through the air, towards Ein. Instinctively, Ein jumped out of the way, and of the platform. Ledah came to sudden halt in front of the pedestal when he had missed Ein, and turned around, while still hovering slightly above the ground. An almost maniacal expression was on his face. The wingless angel was stunned by this. Ledah had never showed such a disturbed expression. Ledah was always calm and rational. This could not be Ledah. Wait… this is not Ledah!

"Who are you?" Ein snapped at him. The man said nothing, but simply charged again with lightning speed. Ein was able to block the blow, but the force of the impact sends him flying backwards through the air. Quickly reacting, Ein made a somersault, and landed on his feet on top of one of the stone benches.

He was angry – no, furious.

Someone was impersonating Ledah! Someone was disgracing him! Someone was mocking his memory!

Ein would not let this continue. He would make this fake pay. Looking up, he saw the fake smiling evilly at him. It made him sick, even though it was not the real Ledah. As the fake Ledah charged at him once again with incredible speed, Ein leaped forward into the air. Their blades clashed, but because his opponent was moving much faster then he was, Ein was thrown backwards, again.

He crashed into one of the stone columns. Pain surged through his body as he fell to the ground, making a loud thud. Chunks of the column followed him, one rather large piece falling onto his lift arm, giving him even more pain then he already felt. He felt drained for some reason, and was barely able to open his eyes. The ceiling seemed to be spinning lightly. Footsteps could be heard. Slowly, they got closer, and closer, and closer, until he was right next to him.

Ein was able to turn his head. The fake stood there with raised weapon, ready to give him the final blow. As he looked at the fake's face, his eyes widened in surprise and he began to tremble. The eyes of the fake were crimson-red, but they were not the same as Ledah's crimson-red eyes. There were the same as…

"You…"

It brought the spear down. Ein felt it pierce the flesh of his chest. The spear went right through him, and into the ground. Coughing up blood, everything quickly became white before his eyes…

This was going to be the end?

To die at the hands of the beast, who had turned itself into a copy of Ledah somehow?

Was this really happening?

He felt… strange.

Like everything was all right.

It was still white before his eyes. Was this how it felt to be blind? Where was he?

_I really end up in all kinds of weird places today…_

He felt two warm slender things wrapping themselves around his chest. They were… arms? Now he also felt something warm press against his back. It felt incredible. He felt warm.

"It's alright, Ein," a sweet voice whispered in his ear. He knew this voice – no, he loved this voice.

_How… How can this-?_

"Shhh… don't talk. You need to become whole again."

_But… how? I was beaten… killed…_

"You are on the edge, but you can still go back… You need to face everything… in your mind."

_My… mind?_

"Yes, it's the only way. He already tried to help you, but it wasn't enough… Now you must go."

_I… I… I have something to tell you…_

"Shhh, tell me next time, ok?"

_Ok…_


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Riviera or anything in it.

**Author's Notes:** Yeah, here we go again. Have fun and please review.

* * *

**Inner Fears**

Chapter 6

The warmth was gone, and was replaced by chilly coldness. The calmness replaced by a depressed feeling and the white surroundings by a black abyss. Ein dreaded every minute he was here. He wanted to get away, back to the warmth… and her.

"I'm sorry, but you can't go back. Not until this is restored once and for all."

You… again?

"Yes, it's me again. It's unfortunate that it has come this far. I had hoped you could do it without further help, but it seems that I came to help you to late…"

I think I asked this before, but, who are you?

"That you haven't figured that out by now surprises me."

I had more important things to worry about.

"Ah, yes, of course. And I also erased that memory for the most part… Anyway, it won't be important after this, because, hopefully, we will never meet each other again."

Why are you doing this?

"It's not a matter of why. I do this because I must."

Must? By whom?

"By both of us."

You confuse me.

"It's not important. You need to focus for what comes now, your mending."

Mending… You mean to say that I am broken?

"You are shattered… and so am I. Now we must become whole again."

Whole… that's what she said too.

"Who?"

The woman I love.

"How can that be?"

Why are you so upset?

"This is not possible… But never mind. It's time to begin."

Alright…

"Very well. Just like last time I shall erase this meeting from your mind, you will only remember that you talked to me, but you won't remember anything specific about it."

I don't think I really have a say in the matter… But why do you do it?

"Because you need to focus. Farewell Grim Angel Ein."

…Farewell… me…

* * *

He blinked. 

His vision was a bit blurry at first, but quickly it began to regain focus. Slowly, blurry colored shapes became clear to him. Where was he? The ground beneath his feet was hard and blood-red. The sky was a disturbing kind of black, with large black holes moving around in the distance. Every here and there you could see an old dead tree or two, but other then that there was nothing.

An eerie wind was blowing; causing the branches of the tree's to make creepy sounds, like several rocking chairs going back and forth…

Ein suddenly realized that his pain was gone, both from his older wounds and the newly gained chest wound. Looking down, he saw that his bandages were missing and that he had no wounds. Placing his gloved hand against his forehead, he noticed the bandage around his head was gone.

He let out a small sigh of relief when he saw that Einherjar was still hanging on the right side of his belt, where it should be. The bow and quiver with arrows however, were gone.

Ein just stood there for a while, almost completely motionless. What should he do now? He was sent here to _mend_ himself, but the question is: how?

Footsteps could be heard. He drew his sword and took a battle-stance; his eyes began scanning the area for the source of the footsteps. It did not take him very long though.

Slowly, a young woman came shuffling towards Ein. Her eyes where almost blank, and her clothes were tainted with dirt and blood. Her long green hair was completely messed up and all kind of things like small twigs and leaves were entangled in it.

Ein just stood there, completely shocked by the sight until she tripped and fell forward. Quickly reacting, he dashed forward and managed to catch her.

"Fia?" he asked concernedly and confused, as if he was not sure if this girl before him was really Fia. She didn't respond, but instead lifted her head slightly and blinked a few times at him. Then, finally, she spoke, even though it was nothing more then a mere whisper.

"Ein…"

"Fia, what happened to you?"

"So much… pain."

"Please, stay with me."

"Why did you… abandon us, Ein?"

"W-what?"

"You abandoned us… You betrayed us… This is… because of you…"

"No… No, please stop," he said almost pleadingly.

"You are not worthy… of friendship…" Ein looked at her in complete disbelieve and shock. Then, suddenly, Fia's body became completely limb.

"Fia? Fia!" Ein shook her lightly, but it was already too late; she was… dead. "No… No, no, no!"

This was not happening. THIS WAS NOT HAPPENING! She could not be dead, no way! But, she was… and she blamed him for it.

Ein gently picked her body up and laid it against a dead tree. He closed her eyelids and then looked away. Tears were forming in his eyes, but he tried his best to blink them away. This was his fault. Again someone close to him died, and again it was most likely _his_ fault.

A distant bang caught his attention. He stood back up and looked to his left, to the direction Fia had come from. There, in the distance, he saw a very, very large tree. The tree of life… and it was completely on fire!

It was as if Ein's feet had gained their own will. Before he knew it, he was running towards the burning tree. It was not the tree he was most concerned about, it was the town located near it. Ein ran like the ground was about to sink away beneath his feet.

* * *

Again. Again he was too late. 

The town was completely ablaze, no tree or house was left unnoticed. As Ein made his way through the burning village, he quickly stumbled across the first bodies of deceased villagers. Most of them were facedown on the ground, several slash-wounds across their backs. They must have tried to flee, like Fia.

Rebecca, Claude, Molan, Kyle… All the villagers he knew were now dead. Then he suddenly spotted something yellow. He ran over to where Lina was laying on the ground, on her back with her head to the side, as if she was staring at something. Ein saw what she was looking at. Her bow was lying, broken, beneath a burning Applecot-tree. She had a large gash across her chest, streams of deep red blood still flowing out, staining her yellow top.

He just felt like puking and crying at the same time. After he closed Lina's eyes like he had done with Fia, he continued his search, hoping there was still _someone_ alive.

* * *

He progressed through the burning town, his hope of finding someone alive sinking with every step. 

This was a slaughter. Nothing more, nothing less.

Letting out a deep sigh, Ein turned his gaze towards the sky. Was it just him, or had the sky become even blacker? In the distance the moving holes seemed to have become bigger also. He wondered what this place truly was.

Faint sounds of clashing metal caught his attention. Then a battle-cry followed soon after. A battle-cry he recognized. Ein began running again, as fast as he could.

A minute or so later he had arrived, but it was already too late. He watched as the Serene came flying through some burning trees. She crashed into the side of a house, Lina and Fia's house to be precise. He watched her as she lay there completely limb.

Then he heard a cry of pain. One that almost caused his heart to stop beating.

Ein dashed forward, with drawn sword, to the spot where Serene had come flying through and jumped into the fires. He made it to the other side with only the sides of his clothing a bit charred.

Looking up, he saw his worst nightmare had come true. She was lying on the ground in a puddle of her own blood, which was even redder then her dress.

He knelt down beside her, after sheathing his sword, and gently lifted her head, supporting it with his arm. "Cierra," he said in a small, weak voice. A warm tear ran down his cheek, and was soon followed by others. She opened her eyes slightly and turned her gaze towards him.

"Ein…" she said wearily. A small stream of blood flowed out of the corner of her mouth. Cierra managed to lift her hand and place it against his cheek. Her glove was torn, exposing some of her bare fingers.

Ein gently grabbed her hand with own, free hand. "Cierra, I… I," he stuttered, not being able to say what he wanted to so desperately. She just smiled warmly at him as she closed her eyes. Then… her beautiful smile faded.

Ein began to cry uncontrollably, tears just gushing down his face and dripping onto the woman in his arms. He hugged her very tightly, as if he was trying to hug her back to life. Pressing his forehead against hers, he whispered to her. "Cierra… I love you…"

For, what seemed, the longest time, he just sat there with Cierra in his arms. Then his crying slowly came to a stop, and he loosened his grip on her slightly. Ein looked at her face. With his gloved thumb he wiped away the blood on her face. He bended over to kiss her on the lips, but at the last moment decided against it and instead kissed her forehead. Then he laid her back on the ground as gently as possible.

Standing up, he looked at her one last time before wiping his tears away, turning around and left.

* * *

Ein's heart was filled with hate and sorrow. 

He was searching for the ones who were responsible for this massacre. They were going to pay dearly…

Ein found himself in front of the burning tree of life. Burning leaves fell all around him, but surprisingly none of them landed on him. It was as if they were avoiding him.

"You have come…"

He looked up and saw Ledah hovering up in the sky, near the tree. Lorelei was glowing brightly in his right hand. For some reason Ein was not surprised at all to see him. It was almost like already had known that he would be here. He just stared up at Ledah, unable to utter a single word.

"Now we shall see if you are truly worthy…" and with that Ledah dived down towards the wingless angel. Ein barely managed to evade the attack, jumping to the right. He drew his sword as Ledah turned around, now standing on the ground. The blonde angel made a high horizontal sweep with his weapon, aimed at his opponent's head, but Ein quickly dodged it by ducking. Then Ledah brought his spear down.

Their blades locked and they now stood closely face to face. "Fight," Ledah said to him.

"No," Ein responded. "I can't."

Ledah suddenly pushed Ein back with unbelievable strength, sending him flying backwards through the air. He flew through some trees and landed with a loud thud on the red earth. The second that he raised himself back to his feet, Ledah came flying through the fire and made another attempt to hit the young angel. Ein was able to block the attack, but it sends him flying through the air, again. This time he crashed into a house.

The wingless angel stood back up again, looking battered and a bit exhausted, panting slightly. As Ledah charged into the burning house, their weapons clashed again, producing a loud metallic sound. "You say you are not worthy," Ledah said to him while they were still fighting inside the house. "But that is just your excuse so that do not have to face your troubles. You must seek the answers. Even if they are not what you hope that they will be, you must face them and accept them."

"W-what?"

"You doubt your abilities and worthiness. If you are not worthy or strong enough, then you must work and do your best until you are… Don't run away, Ein, don't."

Ein lowered his sword slightly and gazed at the ground. Ledah was right. No more running. He must face the things he doubts. If they answers are not the ones he hopes for, then he must accept them. If he is not worthy enough, then he has to work to become worthy. He must do his best from now on, and stop running. Or else something like this might really happen…

_Good..._

Wait… this was not real?

_It worked..._

No, this could not be real. How could he have believed this for even a second?

_My job is done..._

Ein smirked at his own foolishness.

_The mending is completed..._

"Is something funny, Ein?" Ledah asked him in a serious tone.

"I see now how foolish I was Ledah. I have let myself become only a shadow of my true self. Running away from everything was stupid, now I know. Even if there are things I do not whish to do, I must still do it. I must face every challenge and obstacle that I will encounter, that is the only way to get anywhere in life. Even if I am scared… Even if I hate to do it… I must." He raised his sword and took a new battle-stance. "Thank you, Ledah… Now, shall we continue so that I can return to the real world?"

Ledah nodded, an almost invisible small smile on his face. The battle raged on, both of them fighting with every ounce of strength they had in their bodies.

In the end, Ein managed to win, barely. He looked up at Ledah, who was starting to disappear into bright sparkles. "Good work, Ein. You are a truly a worthy Grim Angel, but also, a worthy person."

"Ledah, please, don't leave again…" a teary-eyed Ein said. Ledah smiled at this.

"I was never really gone, Ein. As long as you remember me, I will always live on inside of you… Now it is time for you to face the final challenge."

* * *

"Now… we are one… again…"

* * *

His eyes snapped wide open, and he quickly reached for the spear piercing through his chest. With unknown strength he pulled it out and pushed it away, causing the beast to slightly lose balance. 

Ein rolled away to the side, grabbing his Diviner in the process, and raised himself to his feet. Even though he was in indescribable pain, and a chest-wound were blood was still gushing out of, he raised his weapon with a look of pure determination on it.

"Bring it!"


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Riviera or anything in it.

**Author's Notes:** So… warm… Can't write fast… when it's so damned warm… ugh…

**Edit:** Thank you Feral Phoenix for pointing out that small mistake.

* * *

**Inner Fears**

Chapter 7

Ein panted slightly. A small stream of blood flowed out of the corner of his mouth, the drops dripping slowly to the ground. His left hand was on top of his chest-wound, trying to lessen the bleeding slightly. But it was useless, as the blood was also gushing out of the other end in his back. His right hand was tightly wrapped around the hilt of his Diviner. Ein noticed that his lower left arm felt numb and kind of hurt. Then he remembered that a rather large piece of the column he crashed into had fallen on it.

Opposite of him, the Ledah look-alike monster had regained its balance and raised its Lorelei look-alike. Ein knew he had to react fast in order for him to stop his wound. The crimson-eyed beast charged forward. Ein did also, but he didn't raise his sword though. Just when the spear was about to make contact with Ein's shoulder, he dodged just enough to the side that it missed.

This was the moment. With as much strength as he was able to spend, Ein kicked his unsuspecting enemy in the gut, hard. A twisted expression full of pain appeared on the fiend's face, but Ein was not finished just yet. He spun around and let his right foot make contact, at full speed, with its face.

The beast flew backwards, crashing over one of the stone benches. Ein quickly took his left hand of his wound and grabbed into his small pack, praying that they were not broken. He breathed a small sigh of relieve when two unbroken glass bottles filled with healing elixir came out. With his teeth he pulled, or bit, off the cork of the bottle. Then he poured the full content of the bottle down his chest. He felt as the cold liquid streamed down his chest and onto his wound, which then began to hurt much less.

The Grim Angel wanted to do the same with the other bottle for the hole in his back, but his opponent had already recovered, and was smiling quite angrily at him. Ein spun his sword in his hand so that it was turned a hundred and eighty degrees. He held it now as an off-hand weapon, this way he could block an attack easier with only one hand. He could now use the strength of his entire arm to block, but this way it was practically impossible for him to attack.

Ein blocked the blows that were thrown at him, but he was slowly being pushed back by it. The monster was attacking him relentlessly. They eventually were in front of the platform with the pedestal on it.

Ein leaped up onto the platform to evade another attack, quickly stepping back towards the pedestal until he was mere inches in front of it. His opponent hovered up onto the platform, its demonic red eyes gazing at the angel. It took a step forward and brought the spear down. Ein quickly sidestepped to dodge the attack. He watched as the weapon headed for the book, Ein was sure it would be cut in half. Then something unexpected happened. The spear stopped just before it was about to hit the book. Ein wondered why.

Why would he care about that book? It must be important enough to the beast to not have it destroyed. Maybe he could use the book somehow? But, last time he tried to touch it, he was almost electrocuted. Well… there was not much choice for him then to do it again. But, then again, perhaps he did not _need _to touch the book.

While was thinking this, he had pulled of the cork of the second bottle and let the orange liquid flow down his back. Instantly, the pain lessened greatly, and he felt the wound close a bit, lessening the bleeding considerably. Ein spun his Diviner in his hand again to how he normally held it.

"Your time has come fiend," Ein said without a trace of doubt or fear in his voice. He was not afraid anymore, never again.

The fiend only hissed at him hatefully before attacking again, its eyes seemingly becoming a darker shade of red. Their blades clashed when they both swung them at each other, small white sparks of pure energy erupting from where their blades met. The sparks flowed outwards several inches in random directions before disappearing. For the first time, Ein was the one gaining the upper-hand. He pushed his opponent back strongly, causing it to stagger backwards past the pedestal. Quickly it recovered and attacked anew, not seeming to tire even in the slightest. When their weapons met once more, so did the energy that was created by the clashing powers. If he wasn't preoccupied with fighting, Ein would surely have thought that it looked quite extraordinary.

The Grim Angel somehow managed to kick his opponent's foot away, causing it to fall. Then he brought his sword down, but it was already too late. His weapon impaled itself into the ground as the black smoke spread itself in all directions.

Pulling out his sword, he saw the smoke reforming into its look-alike Ledah form high above the ground. Now was the time to see what the book was all about. Ein smiled almost evilly when he kicked against the pedestal, causing it to fall over and the book to drop onto the floor. The beast had a surprised look on its face. Ein liked where this was going.

"This book seems important to you," he said, raising his sword above his head. "I wonder what will happen if I do _this_." and with that, he brought his sword down, stabbing it into the book. Electricity flowed once more through his sword into his body, but he ignored it. He could care less about pain at the moment. It was either win or die, and he wasn't feeling like dying anymore…

Black liquid was bubbling out of the book where Einherjar impaled it, soon covering the entire surface of the book. Ein looked up when he heard a very, very painful cry of pain. The beast fell out of the sky, speeding towards the ground. Strange black… strings, or something that looked vaguely like it, where coming out of random parts of its body. With a loud and painful sounding thud, it crashed onto the ground. Ein had a look on his face that clearly said: 'Ow, that's _got_ to hurt!'

Looking down, he saw that the bubbling had stopped and the book seemed to be… dissolving itself? Well, it didn't matter anymore. Ein pulled his sword out. He had won. Simple as-

A loud, and familiar, laughing echoed through the cathedral. Ein groaned slightly in annoyance as he looked up. When was this going to end? He thought the book would do the trick. The beast had seemingly rid itself from its Ledah form, and was now a black figure that looked to have a, not completely solid, humanoid shape. The strings seemed to have become more like thin black tentacles, and were coming out off almost every body-part, calmly wiggling around in every direction. Its crimson-red eyes shone darker then ever before. And even though it did not appear to have a mouth, it was able to speak.

"You are a complete fool, angel," it said mockingly. "You have set me free!"

"I w-what?" a completely flabbergasted Ein said.

"By destroying the book, you freed me from the last restraints that bonded me to this filthy place. I was not able to destroy it myself, because then I would destroy _myself_."

"What is your purpose, fiend?" Ein asked, trying to focus himself again.

The fiend laughed. "My purpose? I have no purpose. I do as I wish."

"And what is it you wish to do?"

"My wish is it to taint this world black with their own fears and feast upon it, even in their nightmares!" the fiend hissed hatefully.

"I can't allow you to do that," Ein said while leaping of the platform. He raised his sword and took a battle stance.

The fiend laughed even harder this time. "You can't stop me, puny angel! There have been others far stronger then you who tried to stop me, and they failed as miserably as you will. The best they were able to do was temporarily banish me into that stupid book. And it took them an entire army to do so. You have no chance!"

"Perhaps… but I will not just give up. I will try, and do my best. Even if failure is ensured, giving up and running away is never an option, ever."

"Fool! Can't you see that I can not be beaten? I am a God!"

"Even Gods can be beaten. Even Gods can die."

"I have had enough of you. It is time to erase you from existence!" it lowered its head. Ein gripped his Diviner tighter. Suddenly the fiend let out a horrible, ear deafening cry. Ein covered his ears, while still holding his weapon in one hand, in a futile attempt to block some of the sound of entering his ears.

The fiend began to change shape. It looked as if parts of its body began to turn into black flames. Two enormous white skeleton wings burst out of its back, making a revolting flesh ripping sound when they did. The black flames began to disappear and pale skin began to show. It started by the fiend's hands and feet, and slowly began to make its way up to the head. Clothing began to appear also, following the appearing skin by a mere inch or two.

Ein realized what the fiend had turned into. It had turned into… him.

It did not exactly look like him. Instead of dark blue eyes, the fiend had its own crimson-red ones. Its skin was much paler then Ein's, and it had two giant skeleton wings attached to its back. It had the same clothing as him, but it was mostly colored pitch black. The tentacles that were coming out its body were changing shape now also. They started to turn into something shiny and silver colored.

Then he saw what it was.

It was barbed wire.

The barbed wire was dancing around the fiend's body, as it looked at Ein hatefully. Then the barbed wire started to wrap itself tightly around the body-parts of the fiend. The arms, legs, wings, and even the face. It did not appear like it hurt the fiend, or even cause injuries for that matter.

"Why?" Ein questioned.

"Just see it as proof that you can not even defeat yourself," the fiend answered simply, its voice still the same as before. It raised its hand. The barbed wire around the raised arm loosened and shot up and began to twirl around just above hand. After a short moment, it shot back down and wrapped itself back around the arm. Where the barbed wire was just a second ago was now a black Einherjar, hovering slightly above the fiend's hand. The fiend grabbed it out of the air and looked at it.

"Come little angel," the fiend said, pointing the black Einherjar towards Ein. "After I have killed you, I will destroy everything that was ever dear to you. And I think I will start with that little red-haired slut of yours!"

Ein took a deep breath, trying to channel all his anger into his next attack.

...He would pay for insulting Cierra like that!

Ein began his charge, going faster then he had for a long time. He was confident that he could win, because he had to… He was almost whole again… Only one piece remained, and he had suffered _far too much_ togive upnow.


	8. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Riviera or anything in it.

**Author's Notes:** Sorry for the extremely slow update. I was planning on completing this chapter and posting it a week ago, but my computer started having random breakdowns, and after 10 breakdowns in a row, I decided to stop until I got the damn thing fixed.

Anyway, new chapter, read and review if it pleases you (I know it will please me).

* * *

**Inner Fears**

Chapter 8

The fiend, or _Dark Ein_, as the Grim Angel had dubbed it, simply laughed in a sick and bone-chilling way as Ein charged at him. He just stood there calmly, laughing at him, not even putting up a defensive stance or anything.

The wingless angel, who was quite pissed by the calm behavior of his foe, let out a loud battle-cry while he swung his blade down from above his head with all the strength he was able to conjure. With one fast movement, faster then the blink of an eye, the Dark Ein had caught Einherjar with his bare, free, hand.

"Im-impossible!" Ein exclaimed in shock with wide eyes.

"Don't underestimate me, arrogant fool!" his foe answered and threw Einherjar, with Ein still attached to it, over his shoulder. The wingless angel flew several meters through the air, towards the exit of the cathedral, but he was able twist his body in midair and land on his feet. There was no time to even think, however, as the fiend was in front of him, again in a blink of an eye and without even a sound. Before Ein could raise his blade even an inch, the fiend's fist had buried itself in the left side of the angel's face. He felt as the pointy parts of the barbed wire impaled itself into the flesh of his cheek, but the punch itself was a whole lot more painful.

This time he flew through the exit out of the building. Ein skidded over the old tile path and eventually came to halt about thirty meters from the exit. When he opened his eyes, his foe was already there, calmly standing next to him, the black Einherjar in his hand pointing right between the Grim Angel's eyes.

"Disappointing…" the fiend slightly murmured. "Still you have not shown yourself… Why?"

"What… the _Hell_ are you talking about?" Ein responded angrily, wiping away some trickles of blood from his cheek.

"Moron!" he yelled in response. "Why do think you were able to destroy the book? Believe me; it certainly is _not_ because _you_ are as _strong_ as you _think_ you are!"

Silence…

"I'll tell you," the Dark Ein continued. "It's not like you'll be able to tell anyone anyway! You, my precious little angel, are the host of someone I know very well."

"Host?" Ein said in disbelieve. "Host for what?"

"You don't remember anything of it, do you? Heh, maybe it was too traumatizing for your fragile little, but very retarded, mind! But… it still does not explain why he doesn't show himself… Hmmm, let us find out, shall we?" and with that Ein was pulled up to knees by his foe. Somehow he was unable to move, he was somehow paralyzed by his foe. The fiend sheathed his night-black blade to his belt and then placed a barbed wire covered hand on either side of Ein's head. It pierced into his skin. The angel slightly winced in pain.

"You think you are _so_ strong," the fiend said, obviously enjoying himself. "Let me show you true power!"

The next thing Ein felt was pain. Only pain. It seemed to last almost an eternity as the world blurred into a mix of colors before his eyes and eventually became darkness.

* * *

"Ecthel,"

A faint sound…

Sounds like rain.

"Ecthel…"

It's raining.

It's raining outside.

"Ecthel, sweetie,"

I can hear it, against the glass window.

Good thing I'm inside, because I don't really like to be outside when it's raining. Other children, like my friends, do like it. They jump in the large puddles and stuff like that… I don't. You might get sick, and some parents might scold you because you get your clothes and yourself all wet and dirty. My parents wouldn't do that, but, still, I rather stay inside. Here, in my bed, under my soft, cozy blanket.

"Come on, Ecthel,"

That voice?

"Mommy?" my six year old self said with a big yawn. I pulled the blanket down, exposing my head and rubbed my eyes. There she sat, beside my bed, smiling warmly as ever, my mother. She was beautiful woman, my mother. Smooth white skin, long silk-like black hair that was curled at the end, deep blue eyes, and a smile that, as my farther always said, "Could split the heavens clean in two". I often overhear other adult men, secretly, saying to each other that they envy my farther for being married to my mom. They called him a "lucky bastard". Some were accidentally heard by their wife and had earned themselves a smack against the back of their heads, or something similar.

She put her hand on my cheek. It felt nice and warm. "Time to wake up, my little Ecthel," my mother said to me sweetly. I yawned again and pulled the blanket back over my head. Mom let out a small chuckle. "Come on, we're going on a trip today!"

Hearing this, I bolted out of my bed and sprinted to the closet. "Hurry up, mommy!" I exclaimed while jumping up and down excited. Mom chuckled again and then came over to help me change.

After breakfast, which was delicious, because my mom's cooking was just heavenly, we headed outside, into the city. The rain had stopped, but the sky was still filled with depressing grey clouds. However, that didn't lessen my excitement in the least. Trips were always fun.

It was only me and my mom. Dad had to work today, unfortunately, or it would have been even more fun.

"Mommy, where are we going?" I asked, still rather excited.

She turned to me with a smile, but in her eyes there were some hints of sadness, or discomfort, to be seen. "We're going to-,"

**A loud sound. A bell…**

My mother slowly dropped to her knees in front of the altar.

We were in a church, somewhere in the less busy districts of the city. The building seemed deserted, even though candles had been lit. There priests or priestesses, no nuns, nobody, nobody except my mother and me.

I sat on one of stone benches behind her. The church was not very big, more like one you would find in smaller towns. Maybe it was build when the city was still a small place with not so much residents. If that were so, then this church would be very, very old. It did look like that way. Some broken tiles here and there, old curtains that blocked out much of the light coming in from the large stained-glass windows, making it rather dark and creepy looking inside, lots of old relics and carpets and such, and more things like that.

Why were we here? This didn't really look like a fun place to go too, not even a bit. Mom was praying in holy language. I couldn't understand most of what she was saying; I only had had a few lessons in the sacred tongue. I only heard a few words I recognized. She also spoke very fast.

Please

my son

The

say that

future

but they

say that his future

They say

A

Gods

you

become a

might

a future for my

but

I can not

against it

I ask you

God

protect

I

you

**A few moments after my mother had finished praying, there was blinding white light… and then… a howl.**

"_Hmm, there seem to be parts missing."_

…_No…_

"_Let's see if we can find them, shall we!"_

_Get out…_

"_What was that, my dear little Ecthel?"_

_Get out… Get out my head!_

"_Argh! What is this! You can't-!"_

_I-…I won't let you bring back my pain! GET OUT!_

"_That light… How can you use his power? You, a mortal?"_

_Pain… I-…I won't let you…_

"_Let me what?"_

_I won't let you hurt her again!_

"_Argh!"_

* * *

"Damn, what blinding light!" the Dark Ein complained, covering his eyes with his arm.

"Long time, no see… brother," a voice said. The fiend lowered its arm, the blinding light now gone. He was standing in a large white… void. Before him was his brother, or so they called each other.

A humanoid looking being, its entire body was glowing white. There was no mouth to be seen, and it had very light, and bright glowing, blue eyes. The arms and legs, or what looked it were its arms and legs, were chained by black steel-like chains that did not seem to be attached to anything on the other end. They just disappeared into the white void.

The fiend walked over to his "brother". "It's been a while," he said.

"Indeed it has," the white being answered, its voice similar to that of the Dark Ein, but still different. "You must be wondering where we are and how it comes I am like this, correct?"

"You read my mind."

"This is a place of pain, of forgotten things."

"Of whom?"

"Have you become dense, brother?"

"Hmph," was the only response.

"This is a place on the outskirts of the mind of the Death Bring Angelix, Ecthel."

"And where is our little friend now?"

"I do not know, brother. It seems three minds were to much for this being…"

"Do you mean he is dead?"

"Most likely, but do you care?"

The Dark Ein shrugged. "Not really, but he was fun to toy with. And also, I promised I would kill him and then everything he cares about!"

"You mean the redhead and those other useless Sprites?"

"Yes. Now, how do I get out of here?"

"…I'll show you, _if_ you release me."

"Why should I trust you, dearest brother?" the fiend asked, hissing hatefully. "Don't you hate my guts?"

"Indeed I do," the white being responded, also hissing hatefully. "But, at the moment, I hate the Death Bring Angelix more. He imprisoned me here, in his damn mind, for thirteen years! He is dead now, so I want destroy anything he cared about!"

"Then we share the same goal."

"Indeed we do, brother. Free me, and we shall rain fear on their souls!"

The Dark Ein smiled as walked up to his brother, while unsheathing his dark blade. He slowly raised the blade above his head. "Good to be back on the same side, brother!" he said, and then brought down his blade, cutting the chains. The chains dissolved into the white void, no trace of them left. The being of light stretched his arms and legs. "Free at last!"

"Now, brother, what form will you take?"

"Hmmm, I think I'll go along with you."

The being of light let out a loud cry, similar to the one the Dark Ein let out when he turned into… well, Dark Ein. When the transformation was complete, a _Light Ein_ stood before the Dark Ein.

Snow-white hair, white, with some occasional light blue, clothing, blue tattoos all over his body and face that glowed just as much as its bright blue eyes. Big, white, feathery wings had appeared on his back and pale white sword in his hand. "Now," the Light Ein said, after inspecting his new body. "Shall we?"

* * *

He was barely conscious. He couldn't open his eyes; his strength was all gone, both of body and mind. He barely remembered who he was.

He was Ecthel, a defeated Grim Angel. Broken by a past he could not, and did not want to, remember. The pain had said him enough.

What had happened back then?

He felt something press lightly against his cheek. It felt warm…

"Mom…?"

"You have to remember, Ecthel. Remember everything, even if it hurts… You have to move on. Please don't do this to yourself."

* * *

**Author's Notes:** I know, I know, Dark Ein, Light Ein… I just couldn't find a better way to keep the two fiends apart. 


End file.
